Monroe County
Sheriff’s Office
Daily Crime and Information Report

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recording of the story

January 31, 2005

Ohio man has skydiving
incident

Marathon
- Residents
living near the Marathon airport called Sheriff's dispatchers Sunday just before
noon after they saw a skydiver's parachute float through the air and become
entangled in electric lines - with no skydiver attached.

The chute belonged
to 43 year old Craig Coben of Copley, Ohio. Coben cut the chute loose when
it failed to open as he was skydiving with a skydiving association called Aerohio.
The group will reportedly be skydiving in Marathon through Tuesday. Coben used
his secondary chute to land safely and he was not injured. The chute was removed
from the electric lines by Florida Keys Electric Coop.

Raccoons removed from
cage on Sugarloaf Key

Sugarloaf
Key - Sheriff's
deputies, along with a number of volunteers from various agencies, removed
40 raccoons Friday morning from two cages on a heavily wooded vacant lot on
Upper Sugarloaf Key.

A neighbor who lives
in the Indian Mounds subdivision called the Sheriff's Office after he detected
a strong unpleasant odor in his neighborhood and decided to investigate. He
followed his nose, and found two large cages on a vacant lot on Caribe Street.
In the cages were 40 raccoons. The smell was emanating from a large amount
of raccoon feces in and around the cages. The neighbor met with Deputy Charlie
Cobb and showed him the cages and the raccoons.

According to Deputy
Cobb, the raccoons appeared to have been in the cages for some time. He said
most of the raccoons were in fairly good shape, and had apparently received
food and water on a regular basis.

Upon investigation,
Deputy Cobb discovered a mentally handicapped woman who lives nearby who
said she trapped the raccoons because they were coming into her house. She
said she fed the raccoons and gave them water, but didn't know what else to
do with them. Deputy Chris Scott, who has a state license to capture and transport
wild raccoons, responded and helped remove the raccoons from the cages safely
and humanely. A number of agencies that deal with animals responded to the
scene, including Stand Up for Animals, the Society for Prevention of Cruelty
to Animals, Wildlife Rescue and the Wild Bird Center along with Dr. Jeff Bailey,
a Veterinarian, who took the animals that were in need of immediate medical
attention.

January 28, 2005

Stock
Island - A Stock
Island man was arrested Thursday after he sold four ounces of cocaine to an
undercover operative working for the Monroe County Sheriff's Office Special
Investigations Division.

Detectives working
the case say the meeting took place Thursday afternoon and 55 year old
George Malgrat handed over four ounces of cocaine in exchange for cash in the
parking lot of a North Roosevelt Boulevard restaurant. After the exchange,
Malgrat was arrested and charged with trafficking in cocaine. He then gave
permission for officers to search his home at B-15 8th Avenue on Stock Island.
During the search, two more ounces of cocaine in half ounce packages were found,
along with 20 gram sized packages of cocaine, and two pounds of marijuana in
various sized packages. Drug paraphernalia was also seized at the residence,
along with Malgrat's 2004 F150 Pickup Truck and $1,000.00 in cash.

He was further charged
with a second count of trafficking in cocaine, possession of marijuana and
drug paraphernalia and he was booked into the Monroe County Detention Center.
The Sheriff's Office was assisted in the investigation by the Drug Enforcement
Administration, Key West Police and Border Patrol.

January 25, 2005

Lower
Keys -A Tennessee
man who said the planes were driving him crazy threatened guards at the entrance
to the Naval Air Station at Boca Chica today, then fled from deputies who were
attempting to take him into custody.

41 year old James Carson
reportedly pulled up at the entrance to NAS Boca Chica just after 9 a.m. and
began yelling at the guards about the noise made by planes at the base. During
the course of his tirade, he reportedly used a number of racial slurs and threatened
to kill them repeatedly. When he left the scene, he reportedly swerved attempting
to hit one of the guards with his truck. He then fled in his Toyota pickup
truck, pulling a jetski on a trailer, heading southbound to Key West.

Deputy
John McGee spotted the truck at Smather's Beach in Key West, and recognized
it from a notice to be on the lookout, issued over police radios just minutes
before. Carson was out of the truck, standing by the water on the seawall
on South Roosevelt Boulevard when the deputy pulled up. Carson ran for the
truck and, when Deputy McGee tried to stop him, Carson shoved the deputy
and jumped back into his vehicle. As he was jumping into the vehicle, Deputy
McGee pepper sprayed him. According
to the deputy, Carson then sat in his truck with the doors locked and the windows
up and made a phone call to an unknown person. As he was doing that, officers
broke out one of the trucks rear windows and Carson was pepper sprayed
again, but before he could be removed from the truck, Carson
took off, heading north bound out of the city.

Key West Police and
Sheriff's deputies followed Carson with lights and sirens as he fled up U.S.
One at speeds between 50 and 65 miles per hour. At one point, he veered from
his lane and attempted to knock Deputy McGee off his police motorcycle. A set
of stinger spikes were used on the truck at the Bow Channel Bridge at the 20.2
mile marker and one truck tire was punctured slowing him to speeds of around
25 miles per hour, but he still didn't stop. A second set of stinger spikes
was set up at the south entrance to Big Pine Key and a second truck tire and
a tire on the trailer were punctured. At that point, Carson was driving on
the wheel rims and traveling about 10 miles per hour, veering into traffic
and endangering members of the public. Detective Bobby Randolph and Deputy
Matt Dowling then used their patrol vehicles to box him in and bring him to
a stop. Their vehicles sustained minor damage, but Carson was taken into custody
without any injury to himself or anyone else.

At
the scene, as he was being handcuffed, he again said the planes were driving
him crazy. A search of the truck turned up a stun gun, two containers of
pepper spray and a sword, described by officers as a "large Conan the
Barbarian sword in a fancy scabbard."

Carson was charged
with multiple counts of aggravated assault on law enforcement officers, battery
and aggravated battery on law enforcement officers, aggravated fleeing and
eluding and willful, wanton reckless driving. He was booked into the Monroe
County detention center.

January 24, 2005

Detectives release
name of man found in Cow Key Channel

Preliminary results
from an autopsy show that 55 year old Paul Henrichs death was consistent with
drowning. Some tests from the autopsy have not returned as of yet, so the cause
of death remains under investigation. Henrichs lived on board a boat in Cow
Key Channel, not too far from where his body was recovered Thursday morning.

Memphis man dies while
diving

Key
Largo - A Memphis
Tennessee man died while diving on the wreck "The Duane" Friday morning.

60 year old Lawrence
Thurman was diving from the commercial dive vessel Tropical Voyager with a
group of divers. His dive buddy told investigators he and Thurman dove to 90
feet for about 17 minutes, then began surfacing. He said they stopped
at 15 feet and Thurman indicated he was having some sort of problem. They then
reached the surface and swam to the boat's tow line, at which time Thurman
reportedly collapsed. He was brought on board the boat unconscious and not
breathing. Members of the crew began Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation and he
was brought in to Key Largo Harbor Marina. He was pronounced dead at Mariner's
Hospital.

An autopsy has been
done and, according to investigators, the death appears to be diving related.
Final autopsy reports are pending and should be obtained from the Medical Examiner's
Office.

January 20, 2005

Detectives investigating
body found in Cow Key Channel

Lower Keys -Sheriff's
detectives responded to reports of a body found floating in Cow Key Channel
this morning.

The body of a white
male was found this morning. Detectives say an examination of the body
has shown no obvious signs of foul play. He has not been positively identified
yet, although deputies say he is familiar to them and they believe they
will be able to identify him shortly. He is believed to be in his mid to
late fifties, five foot five or six, about 150 pounds with think gray hair
and a stubbly beard.

An autopsy will be
scheduled to determine the cause of his death.

Detectives
warn about the dangers of Angel's Trumpet

Monroe
County - Three Marathon teens found out that the
high from ingesting a common plant called "Angel's Trumpet", also known as Jimson weed, is not as much
fun they thought it would be.

The
three were hospitalized late Wednesday at Fishermen's hospital after they
steeped some of the plant and drank it as a tea. One of the three became
so violent from hallucinations that it required three deputies standing by
at the hospital for several hours to make sure he, and hospital personnel,
were safe.

The
plant has beautiful trumpet shaped flowers which bloom in late winter and
early spring, hanging down from the lush green foliage. They emit an "Angelic" odor
in the late evenings, which accounts for the name. They come in a variety
of colors from purple, to pink, red, yellow or white, and the seeds for the
plant can be easily obtained on the internet, or from nurseries. The plant
grows all over the southern United States, from Florida to Texas, Arizona,
the Carolinas and California. People who have them growing in their
yards may not even know how deadly the plants can be. Word gets around among
kids, however, who are under the mistaken impression that ingesting the plant
will give them a cheap high. Every year Hospitals all over the county, the
Sheriff's Office and other area law enforcement agencies have to deal with
the aftermath of the ones who decide to experiment with the poisonous substance.

"I
don't think they got the high they expected," said Marathon Detective Rick
Martin. "I suspect they will be going back to school and will be telling
their friends not to do it," he added.

Angel's
Trumpet reportedly contains the substances atropine,
hyoscine, and hyoscyamine. Ingesting Angel's
Trumpet will cause symptoms ranging from headache, agitation, fever and dizziness,
to hallucinations, convulsions, coma and death. There is no reliable way to
measure a dose so a person who decides to eat, drink or chew the plant has
no way of knowing what the effect will be. A parent should be cognizant of
the possible symptoms and if they suspect their child has ingested the poisonous
plant, they should take the child to the hospital immediately.

January
13, 2005

Marijuana,
explosive devices found at Grassy Key residence

Grassy Key - Two
men who live next door to Sheriff Rick Roth were arrested Wednesday after
marijuana and two explosive devices were found in their residence.

Sheriff's detectives
from the Special Investigation's Division received reports
that marijuana was being sold from the home on Guava Avenue, Grassy Key.
According to the reports, the men who lived there would make jokes about
the fact that they lived next to the Sheriff and were selling the drugs. A two month long investigation ensued, ending in the service of a search
warrant Wednesday morning.

A search of the home
turned up marijuana, drug paraphernalia and two suspected pipe bombs. A
number of plastic bags containing marijuana residue found in a bedroom
of the house indicated the marijuana was being packaged for sale. Detectives
seized almost $4,000 in cash as possible proceeds from drug sales.

30 year old David
Schugar was charged with possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.
He was also charged with possessing the explosive devices after he admitted
they were his. His roommate, 49 year old Michael Mariner was charged with
possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of drug
paraphernalia. Both men were booked into the Monroe County Detention Center.

Telephone scam being
used by Jail Inmates

Monroe County - Residents
receiving collect calls from jail inmates should be aware of a telephone
scam some are using to make long distance phone calls.

The scam is one used
by inmates all over the country. Sheriff's Office dispatchers have received
approximately 10 complaints in the past few weeks here in the Keys. Here's
how it works. An inmate calls someone collect - the only way an inmate
can make a call from any of the Monroe County Detention Centers, aside
from using a pre-paid calling card. When the person he or she is calling
accepts the collect call, the inmate asks for help making contact with
someone. The inmate asks the person to dial a number, usually starting
with *72 - a call forwarding feature. This calls a new number, billing
the call to the person's phone and potentially running up a very large
phone bill.

Anyone with call
forwarding on their phone can fall victim to this scam. People need
to be aware of it and say no when asked to make such a call - no matter
how sympathetic the story they hear.

"Some of these inmates
can sound really desperate - they might tell you they have to call their
mother because she is sick; they might tell you they need to contact their
child, or wife because of a crisis of some sort," said Major Tommy Taylor,
Commander of Keys detention facilities. "Don't fall for it. In fact, if
you receive a collect call from a detention center and don't know the person
calling, or don't want to talk to the caller, don't accept the collect
call in the first place," he said.

Anyone who is receiving
repeated unwanted phone calls or harrassing phone calls from a Detention
facility in the Keys should report the calls to the Sheriff's Office at
305-293-7300.

January 7, 2004

Teen reports kidnapping in
Marathon

Marathon - An 18 year old Marathon girl
reported being kidnapped as she was walking to a drugstore at 3:15 a.m. today
(Friday).

The girl called the Sheriff's Office
at 3:45 a.m. to report the incident. She told Deputy William Mader she was
walking behind Walgreen's Drug Store on Industrial Road when a large black car
pulled up. She said there were three black men in the car. The front and rear
passengers reportedly jumped out. She said the front passenger had a small
semi-automatic handgun and, although she was yelling and screaming, she was
forced into the car.

The suspects reportedly drove her to
the area between 39th and 41st Streets on the highway where they pushed her out
of the car. The suspects car continued driving southbound. She walked to the
Banana Bay Resort where she met up with a friend and called the Sheriff's
Office.

The suspects were all described as
black males with dread lock style hair. The driver was reportedly five foot
seven inches tall and between 150 and 170 pounds. Both the front and rear
passengers were described as five foot eleven inches tall, 180 pounds. The rear
passenger had a black jacket and his top front teeth were gold.

The victim declined to be
interviewed by detectives, and refused assistance from a Sheriff's Office
Victim/Witness Advocate. She said she just wanted to go home and go to sleep.
Detectives will be investigating.

Man arrested with partially assembled cross bow and a knife

Marathon - Deputies were called to the Tom
Thumb store on 25th Street in Marathon Thursday to check on a report of a man
with a gun.

When Deputies Robin Tanner and
Dennis Coleman arrived, the clerk said two customers told her there was a man
outside the store with a gun, asking for money. Upon investigating, the
deputies found 58 year old Elam Robinson by the dumpsters. He had a small
crossbow in his hands and was attempting to assemble it. He was ordered to drop
it and he did. He was taken into custody. A knife was also found in his pocket.
A six pack of beer was sitting on the ground near him, and he also had a beer
in his pocket and he smelled strongly of alcohol. No gun was found.

Robinson was charged with carrying a
concealed weapon and he was booked into the Monroe County Detention Center.

January 3, 2005

Business burglaries under
investigation

Sheriff’s detectives
are investigating and seeking help in connection with a series of business
burglaries and criminal mischief cases in the upper Keys. Detectives say that
between December 24 and January 2, five businesses were burglarized and money
taken from the cash registers. In four of the cases, the suspects or suspects
either broke a window or forced open a door to gain entry. In one instance,
entry was made through an unlocked window. The business burglaries occurred at
Keys Castaways Consignments, Paradise Pizza, Ashleigh’s Attic, Brendaline’s and
Chad’s Deli. All of these businesses are located between the 98 and 99-mile
markers. Also, Sheriff’s detectives say that five other businesses in the same
area were victims of criminal mischief cases between the dates of December 24
and 28. Four of the businesses reported windows broken by thrown rocks and one
business reported that a door was forced open. However, the businesses reported
that nothing was taken. The businesses reporting criminal mischief were Anderson
Financial, McDonald CPA, Affordable Marine, Shell World and Thrifty Car Rental.
Sheriff’s detectives are asking anyone who spotted suspicious activity or
persons near these businesses from December 24 through January 2, to call
Detective David Carey at 853-3211. Crime Stoppers will pay up to a one thousand
dollar reward for information leading to an arrest in any of these cases.
Callers may remain anonymous. The Crime Stoppers hotline is 1-800-346-TIPS
(8477).